Mr FIAT - Your #1 source for vintage car parts

General Abarth as a city car, probably not !!

Currently reading:
General Abarth as a city car, probably not !!

arorat

arorat

TA to Turismo
Parked in the garage
Joined
Mar 21, 2011
Messages
1,366
Points
326
Location
London
Finally took the Abarth on a long run, well 55 miles down the A3 to portsmouth for a cloudy day out - I have put about 150 miles on the clock after picking it up with 250 on it... you guys must be impressed... hahah

It's a Turismo MTA, not as easy to drive as the trusty old TA which you could fling about in the city, the Abarth although feels a lot tighter I can imagine the MTA box driving you mad !! The manual box may be better for the city.

for long runs the Abarth is the one to get, I am impressed with the mileage, on mixed Sports / non sports mode it delivers the same mpg as the TA on normal mode.

When we picked it up with 250 miles on the clock the Abarth already had 2 previous owners !! we met up with the dealer in Portsmouth and he gave us some history, all genuine.
 
The MTA box is good, I am slowly getting used to the car and wouldn't go back to a normal 500, a full auto box would be better but it will add cost. Don't get me wrong it's a great design and the car goes when you push it, but for city driving I would have the TA back with its revvy engine.
 
I bet it just takes practice :p I reckon you’ll be fine... how’s the fuel economy (for those of us unfamiliar with a TwinAir?)

The one common thread through all the Selespeed systems is that they work most easily with a smaller, less-powerful engine. Dualogic in the Punto (1.4 8v 77bhp) is probably the smoothest and easiest of the lot, engaging gears with a soft click, but oh-so-slow. Dualogic 500 (1.4 16v 100bhp) seems good to me.

Selespeed in the Stilo Abarth (170bhp) was hit-and-miss, prone to hiccups and sudden surges of 2.4L torque, but considerably more refined than the original 156/147 Selespeed (gearchanges didn’t sound or feel like something was about to break). You have a little more power than this in the Abarth but also the effect of a turbo in the mix... so modulating the torque might sometimes be a challenge.

The 3.2L 147GTA had 250bhp, and I thought that was as dreadful as it got, until I encountered yet another single-clutch Selespeed setup, this time from Sant’Agata (5.0L 520bhp). That’s when you realise that all the other cars were a piece of cake to drive in town, and so refined (say, can’t you feel your gearchanges through the floor?) Instead, when you have a first gear that runs to 50mph/80km/h, it’s a short and miserable life for the clutch in a traffic jam, and reversing for the seven-point turn gives the most exciting lurches this side of a rollercoaster... :rolleyes:

-Alex
 
Last edited:
alexGS said:
I bet it just takes practice :p I reckon you’ll be fine... how’s the fuel economy (for those of us unfamiliar with a TwinAir?)

The one common thread through all the Selespeed systems is that they work most easily with a smaller, less-powerful engine. Dualogic in the Punto (1.4 8v 77bhp) is probably the smoothest and easiest of the lot, engaging gears with a soft click, but oh-so-slow. Dualogic 500 (1.4 16v 100bhp) seems good to me.

Selespeed in the Stilo Abarth (170bhp) was hit-and-miss, prone to hiccups and sudden surges of 2.4L torque, but considerably more refined than the original 156/147 Selespeed (gearchanges didn’t sound or feel like something was about to break). You have a little more power than this in the Abarth but also the effect of a turbo in the mix... so modulating the torque might sometimes be a challenge.

The 3.2L 147GTA had 250bhp, and I thought that was as dreadful as it got, until I encountered yet another single-clutch Selespeed setup, this time from Sant’Agata (5.0L 520bhp). That’s when you realise that all the other cars were a piece of cake to drive in town, and so refined (say, can’t you feel your gearchanges through the floor?) Instead, when you have a first gear that runs to 50mph/80km/h, it’s a short and miserable life for the clutch in a traffic jam, and reversing for the seven-point turn gives the most exciting lurches this side of a rollercoaster... :rolleyes:

-Alex
Click to expand...

An easy 52-55 mpg in eco mode on the TwinAir. The Dualogic on the TwinAir is generally very smooth and quick changing. Floor it from a stand still and the change ups are a little slower
 
alexGS said:
I bet it just takes practice :p I reckon you’ll be fine... how’s the fuel economy (for those of us unfamiliar with a TwinAir?)

The one common thread through all the Selespeed systems is that they work most easily with a smaller, less-powerful engine. Dualogic in the Punto (1.4 8v 77bhp) is probably the smoothest and easiest of the lot, engaging gears with a soft click, but oh-so-slow. Dualogic 500 (1.4 16v 100bhp) seems good to me.

Selespeed in the Stilo Abarth (170bhp) was hit-and-miss, prone to hiccups and sudden surges of 2.4L torque, but considerably more refined than the original 156/147 Selespeed (gearchanges didn’t sound or feel like something was about to break). You have a little more power than this in the Abarth but also the effect of a turbo in the mix... so modulating the torque might sometimes be a challenge.

The 3.2L 147GTA had 250bhp, and I thought that was as dreadful as it got, until I encountered yet another single-clutch Selespeed setup, this time from Sant’Agata (5.0L 520bhp). That’s when you realise that all the other cars were a piece of cake to drive in town, and so refined (say, can’t you feel your gearchanges through the floor?) Instead, when you have a first gear that runs to 50mph/80km/h, it’s a short and miserable life for the clutch in a traffic jam, and reversing for the seven-point turn gives the most exciting lurches this side of a rollercoaster... :rolleyes:

-Alex
Click to expand...

Thanks Alex, great post...

You are right about practice, I am getting comfortable with the MTA box now and it's a fun car to drive.

The new MTA came out a few years back, that ironed out issues with the previous MTA boxes, don't ask me what the issues were but I went along with the sales guy who told me this a few years back, didn't buy at that time :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

S
Technical Abarth TJet wiring diagramm, Car sometimes doesn’t start
Replies
8
Views
325
Spike1007
S
M
Technical ASR button and rear demister button not illuminating \ working
Replies
15
Views
578
Piccolo Nero e Bella
Piccolo Nero e Bella
T
Technical heated seats not working
Replies
4
Views
251
tonnaf
T
boatboy121
Technical Reversing sensors not working
Replies
5
Views
361
boatboy121
boatboy121
J
  • Question
Technical Central Locking not working .
Replies
10
Views
704
Jack
J
Back
Top